Shobhaa De stands by Mumbai tweet as storm rages

Kolkata: Celebrity author and socialite Shobhaa De said on Thursday she would continue her Twitter campaign for a separate state of Mumbai, a day after her tweet demanding statehood for India’s commercial capital set off a political storm.

“Maharashtra and Mumbai??? Why not? Mumbai has always fancied itself as an independent entity, anyway. This game has countless possibilities,” De had tweeted a day after the UPA and the Congress gave the go-ahead to Telangana.

The 65-year-old author is not alone. Telangana has stoked demands for separate states from across the country.

Maharashtra and Mumbai??? Why not? Mumbai has always fancied itself as an independent entity, anyway. This game has countless possibilities.

Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan was dismissive of her demand. “The comments are frivolous... neither Mumbai nor Vidarbha will be separated from Maharashtra,” he said. “Unity is our strength.”

De, a Mumbai resident, remained defiant even as the Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, whose politics centres around Maharashtrian identity, protested in front of her residence in Mumbai. Sena leader Sanjay Raut demanded criminal action against her while MNS chief Raj Thackeray launched a personal attack.

“I’ve not said something offensive. There is no question of an apology,” she said in Kolkata. “I’ll continue to tweet on Mumbai being an independent entity... everybody has their right to raise their voices against the wrongs. (with PTI inputs)